1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of carpet seam sealing systems in general, and in particular to a double sided hot melt adhesive carpet tape that prevents carpet seams from peaking.
2. Description of Related Art
As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,198,300; 5,384,001; 4,416,713; 5,376,419; and 5,693,171, the prior art is replete with myriad and diverse carpet seam sealing tapes including at least one patent that employs an adhesive coating on both sides of the tape backing.
It should be noted that while U.S. Pat. No. 5,376,419 employs a hot melt adhesive on the top surface of the tape, it specifically calls for the use of a pressure sensitive adhesive on the bottom surface of the tape and this arrangement is specifically designed for a “glue down” carpet installation. The carpet is directly adhered to the floor as opposed to a layer of padding which rests upon the floor.
It should be noted that for the purpose of this invention, the term “pressure sensitive” is to be interpreted as a “releasable” or “non-permanent” adhesive such as is employed on duct tape, Scotch brand tape, Post-It notepaper or H.B. Fuller Co., adhesive #HM8340.
Furthermore, again for the purposes of this invention, a “heat activated contact adhesive” is to be understood to be a “permanent” adhesive such as is used to adhere Formica to a counter top, glue carpet to a pole or vinyl reducers to a floor such as XL Corporation's QUICK STICK™ or 3M Corporation's HIGH STRENGTH 96.
While all of the aforementioned prior art constructions are more than adequate for the basic purpose and function for which they have been specifically designed, they are uniformly deficient with respect to their failure to provide a simple, efficient, and practical double sided hot melt adhesive carpet tape that is specifically designed for use with carpet padding as opposed to conventional glue down carpet installations wherein the carpet is directly adhered to a rigid substrate such as a floor or the like. The hot melt adhesive will penetrate both the carpet backing above the tape backing layer and the heat activated contact adhesive will penetrate the porous padding surface below the tape backing to create a secure bond between the carpet padding and the carpet backing that will eliminate the peaking effect at the carpet seam.
As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need for a new and improved double sided hot melt adhesive carpet tape that is specifically designed to be used in conjunction with carpet padding to prevent carpet seam peaking, and the provision of such a construction is a stated objective of the present invention.